Loading…
‘Child’ who was adopted by family but turned out to be 22-year-old woman denies being 'adult sociopath'
Published
| Last updated
The 22-year-old ‘child’ who was adopted by a family has denied their allegations of her being 'adult sociopath'.
Natalia Grace posed as a 'six-year-old Ukrainian orphan' who 'thought she'd found the right family'.
She was supposed to be a small child with a rare bone growth disorder, who Kristine and Michael Barnett adopted back in 2010.
However it seems that Natalia was - in fact - a 22-year-old who was said to have made several attempts to kill the couple, they have claimed.
The happy family dynamic changed after the Barnetts believed she was secretly an adult attempting to harm their family.
They claimed that she was an 'adult sociopath masquerading as a child' in a bizarre criminal case of fraud.
After they deserted Natalia in an apartment in Layfette, Indiana, in 2013, authorities pushed 'neglect charges' onto the Kristine and Michael.
"We were all abused," Michael cries in the trailer for upcoming documentary The Curious Case of Natalia Grace.
"I hate this. She tried to poison and kill my wife.
"[And] one night, I opened my eyes and Natalia is standing at the foot of the bed with a knife in her hand."
In 2019, Natalia confidently denied all of the allegations made against her while giving her side of the story in an interview on Dr. Phil.
She said: "It's not true. It's not true at all. I just want people to hear my side."
Kristine began questioning her age when Natalia underwent a surgery related to her dwarfism.
But Natalia denied her adoptive parents' claim that they made her have bone scans that proved she was born in 1989.
"Everything started happening after that one moment," Natalia said.
"I actually thought I had found the right family after bouncing around from a lot of families. I thought I had found the right family for me."
The synopsis for the upcoming doc reads: "Initially assumed to be a six-year-old Ukrainian orphan with a rare bone growth disorder, Natalia was adopted by Kristine and Michael Barnett in 2010.
"However, the happy family dynamic soured when allegations against Natalia were brought by the Barnetts who alleged Natalia was an adult masquerading as a child with intent to harm their family.
"In 2013, Natalia was discovered living on her own which ignited an investigation that led to Michael and Kristine's arrest and a firestorm of questions."
The Curious Case of Natalia Grace will air for three consecutive nights on Investigation Discovery starting on 29 May.
Topics: TV and Film, Natalia Grace
